MUSiC BiN

Bronsted and company shines in second full-length album

Rhythm, Racket and Romance isn’t Billy Bronsted’s first album. The Wausaubased country/Americana singer already released This Bed of Mine in 2017.

But there is something different about this album. And Bronsted would be the first to tell you that.

First off is Bronsted’s voice. Bronsted’s voice has evolved for this album, into more powerful vocals that break up on the edge as he drives home a vocal melody.

Interestingly enough, Rhythm, Racket and Romance is only one of three albums that Bronsted is planning to release in 2022.

Bronsted already shared his journey back to music. He left Wausau for Colorado to get sober during the pandemic period, he told City Pages in an interview about the return of music after the pandemic’s shutdowns killed the music sence. Bronsted returned to Wausau with a newfound enthusiasm, ready to dive fully into music.

Much of the music was written before that sobering up period, Bronsted told City Pages. Bronsted has been working on the album since 2018. And whereas his first album was essentially a collection of the songs he’d built up since being a teenager, this album was approached differently he says. The songs represent a real moment in time for him, with little editing to the writing. “This album is raw, and to maintain that integrity I had to let some things be,” Bronsted says.

He did return to the studio to clean up some of the vocals after his return to Wausau. “This certainly isn’t a recovery album, but I had to recover to give it its proper release.”

Bronsted returned to Wausau with a renewed lease on being a professional musician. Armed with an acoustic in tow, he seemed to be playing everywhere, joining other musicians or playing larger shows with the backing of The Loot. That included an appearance at the Mile of Music in Appleton, a major music festival in its own right. It was a big step for Bronsted.

The album contains some big collaborations. The track “Ease the Pain” features Feed the Dog. He pairs with Rachel Hanson (currently on tour with The Last Revel) on “Let’s Fall in Love.” And Bronsted closes the album with “Cockroach,” which features bluegrass act Dig Deep.

“First off, I’m a lucky dude,” Bronsted told City Pages. “I had some vision in the sound of some of these songs and asked these folks to help me make them come alive. My favorite part about the collaborations is that they are all (mostly) live. “Ease the Pain” and “Cockroach” are just awesome fun live string-band-in-the-studio takes. “Cockroach” was recorded in the living room of my grandparents’ old home (which will no longer be standing soon). Rachel and I sang “Let’s Fall in Love” live in the studio together in the same room. It’s just all super real like that.”

But in case you’re picturing a bluegrass album here, what Bronsted is bringing here is pure country/Americana, complete with spanky Telecaster style guitars and marching 4/4 beat backing tracks. Clean or slightly dirty slide guitars roll over the tracks like butter and evoke a honky tonk country bar. A mixture of some funky background guitars sometimes adds a modern touch to some of the tracks.

If you’ve seen Bronsted in person, he looks the part, often sporting a ten-gallon hat and a mustache.

He also plays the part, and plays it well. Rhythm, Racket and Romance is anything but racket — it’s a smooth, old school country album that’s easy to listen to. Check out the new album on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube Music. Preorder the CD at billybronsted.com.

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Billy Bronsted plays the Juneteenth celebration at Whitewater Music Hall last year. Bronsted just released his latest album, Rhythm, Racket and Romance.

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